


Intern Month

by eledhwenlin



Category: Teen Wolf (TV), Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-24
Updated: 2014-02-24
Packaged: 2018-01-13 04:10:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1212193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eledhwenlin/pseuds/eledhwenlin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Intern Month at Night Vale Community Radio! Newest intern Stiles Stilinski is excited that he gets to host for a full week. If only Scott would stay away from the Dog Park, Stiles would be happy. Except if it weren't for Scott and the Dog Park, Stiles wouldn't ever have met that hot guy who must be new to Night Vale.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Intern Month

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Teen Wolf Reverse Big Bang for prompt #3015.
> 
> Many thanks go to inspiredlife for the beta! <3
> 
> P.S. The embed for the second song doesn't work as expected, so please just click through to listen to the song.

> Hello Night Vale, I'm more than pleased, ultra-pleased one could say, to present today's show. Our beloved community radio wouldn't be what it is without its interns. As you know, it's intern month at Night Vale Community Radio, also known as Cecil and Carlos's honeymoon, and each of us lowly interns gets to host the show for a full week while our favourite radio host and favourite scientist are off vacationing in a place I'm not allowed to name. Actually they're only gone for three weeks, and there are only three interns, but intern three weeks doesn't have the same ring to it.
> 
> Anyway, my name's Stiles and I'm the lucky one to start this off. I don't think that my dad being the Sheriff has anything to do with it, but no one wanted to take me up on my offer to play rock-paper-scissors and then someone just suggested I go first, even though I've only been an intern for a month. Which has been awesome, really, I totally dig this. I love talking, I was made for the radio.
> 
> Speaking of the Sheriff, who by the way is not allowed to buy any of the junk they sell as food at Moonlite All-Nite Diner, the Sheriff's Secret Police has issued a public service announcement:
> 
> Please don't shoot at the yellow helicopters. They're simply there for your safety.
> 
> Earl Road will have to be closed between the dog park and the vacant lot from 5pm today to 6am tomorrow. Do not drive or walk near Earl Road during this time. Do not investigate any loud noises or flashing lights. If you see anyone walking towards Earl Road, turn away and forget you ever knew them. If you think you saw something on Earl Road, rest assured that it was just a very complex hallucination. Please use the Eastern Expressway instead.
> 
> I do wonder what's up with the stupid dog park. In the last few weeks we had a few people disappearing near the dog park and some listeners called in stating that they felt a strange pull towards the dog park. So, for god's sake, Scott, stay away from the fucking dog park.
> 
> And now for the weather!

> Cheryl has asked us to remind you that dancing classes for 8-10 years old, which now mandatorily replace gym class at Night Vale Elementary, start again this Wednesday. Don't forget to book a course for your child unless you want them to fail a grade!
> 
> Good night, Night Vale!

~~~***~~~

Derek didn't exactly choose to come to Night Vale. He simply didn't have anywhere else he could go. At least Night Vale's a bit more open to, well, strange creatures. It's not the safest place to live, but it's still safer for Derek than staying in New York. With Laura gone, the city seems even bigger and more dangerous. Derek's not sad about leaving. One day he just got into his car and started to drive.

While he didn't expect to end up in California, it wasn't really a surprise, either. Night Vale's not Beacon Hills, but it's close enough, only a few hours driving away. Theoretically Derek could go and visit his family in the cemetery. Practically he won't because he'll never be ready to stand in front of his family's grave and read the names of his grandparents on the tombstone to the left (Gramps died of a heart attack when Derek was five, Gram followed soon after--of grief, Derek's mum used to say) and his parents' right next to them, followed by his younger siblings and his cousins and--no, Derek's pretty sure he'll never be able to stand there.

Night Vale was a good choice inasmuch as there's always some empty apartments. Derek's gotten his current apartment by offering to act as the building's handyman. He doesn't have to pay rent in exchange for fixing Mrs Jefferson's leaky sink. Derek's done worse things to get by. 

Within one week of his arrival, he's doing all sorts of odd jobs around the neighbourhood. It's also a good way to collect intel--Night Vale is a tight-knit community and Derek needs to figure out who he needs to have an eye on.

"The Stilinski boy used to come by every two week and do it," old Mr Nowak says when Derek gets started on mowing the lawn. The garden looks like it hasn't been touched in years. 

Derek wants to ask what happened, but settles for a nod. Although he hasn't been here for long, he's already figured out that one shouldn't ask too many questions. Still, Derek needs to know what or whom he needs to look out for, what precautions are absolutely essential. His landlady already advised him to always keep a pound of spinach handy, for reasons she didn't want to tell him.

Mr Nowak, however, seems to be in a talkative mood and he satisfies Derek's curiosity without Derek needing to prompt him. Derek thinks that Mr Nowak hasn't had anyone to talk to in a very long while.

"Boy started college," Nowak says. "Somewhere on the East coast, one of them fancy schools. Came back a few months ago, though. Apparently he's got some sort of job now. And his dad is, well, you know."

Derek doesn't actually know, but he files the information away and starts the lawn-mower. It's loud enough to prevent any further conversations--not that it keeps Mr Nowak from talking.

After all his jobs for the day are done, Derek's still twitchy. The work's not hard enough to tire him out and being in a new environment makes Derek nervous, constantly on vigilance. It'll take him weeks to settle down in something like a routine, months before he'll sleep through the night and not wake at every quiet noise he isn't used to yet. Derek's taking this over being hunted and cut in half, though, over being tortured with electricity and wolfsbane. For all that Night Vale is a strange city, at the moment it's one of the safest places for Derek, simply because no one will expect him to come here.

One of the easiest ways to quiet his wolf is to run, though. Incidentally it's also a good method to get to know his neighbourhood, to find out escape routes and hidden paths, as no one will think it weird if a jogger keeps running the same route, if he stops at some place or another and does some stretching (perfect cover to look at something in detail--people just tend to assume that he's tired and needs a breather).

So Derek runs. He follows main street until he hits 5th street. He turns right, to get back to Earl Road. It was closed this week, not for long, but ever since Derek's made a point of avoiding that section. He only means to take it until 2nd street which he can follow to get straight back to his apartment. If that means he doesn't need to go near the dog park, all the better. There have been vague warnings about the dog park, but nobody needs to tell Derek to stay away--even thinking about the dog park makes his skin prickle. 

But it's been a long time since Derek could have a peaceful run. When he reaches the Subway, he's just hit his stride and then the lights on the corner of 2nd street and Earl Road turn to green just as Derek reaches them and he can cross the street without even slowing down. 

It's only when he sees the sign of Ralph's that he realises how far he's gone. He slows to a stop, his breathing harsh in his ears. There's a noise like static in his ears and the air smells sweet. His skin is crawling and he has to fight the urge to growl, all his instincts telling him to hunker down and fight. 

Derek hears them before he sees: two young men on the other side of the street, talking loudly. Their voices are coming closer, so it seems they're heading straight for the dog park. Great, he thinks and drops into a stretch just to be doing something.

"No, dude, explain to me again how you managed to lose your inhaler at the _dog park_ ," one of the guys says. "Seriously, Scott, Earl Road was closed, what the fuck where you doing here?"

"Mrs Anderson's dog," Scott starts, but then guy #1 groans.

"For the love of Halo and Call of Duty, Scott, please tell me you didn't go into a cordoned and closed off area to find a lost dog?"

"Okay, Stiles, I won't tell you." Scott sounds amused rather.

Stiles, Derek thinks. He feels like the name should ring a bell, should tell him something, but he's still fighting off the creeping sense of being watched by the dog park. He can see someone approaching on the other side of the street and glances over them quickly to--wait, are those tentacles? Derek blinks because he was sure that one of the guy had tentacles hanging out of his arm sleeves, but when he turns his head to look at them head-on, he just sees two normal guys. Tentacle guy very obviously does not have any tentacles. Instead he's wearing a shirt with _I support single moms_ printed on it. He's gesturing, but Derek doesn't think he'd mistake some frantic hand-waving for tentacles. 

Derek stretches one more time and decides to give up on stupid pretences and just turn around and go home. He starts to turn, his eyes passing over the two guys again (still no tentacles). Then he stops dead because in the entrance to Somerset Road he can see a pair of glowing eyes. Okay, make that three sets of glowing eyes and they're following Scott and Stiles, the low fast-slow stalking of a predator, and Derek's started to run almost immediately. 

The eyes seem to belong to bodies entirely shrouded in shadows, and then one pounces on Scott. 

"Get down!" Derek yells. 

Stiles drops to the ground, flailing on his back. At Derek's shout the shadows pause, though, and then they're gone, like smoke dispersing in the wind. 

"What the fuck was that?" Stiles says breathlessly. Derek notices his large eyes, almost doe-like, and dark moles sprinkled on his jaw and plush lips that look as if he'd been biting them. His shirt has rucked up to expose pale skin and a dark treasure trail. It's enough to make Derek stumble for a moment, which pisses him off.

"Don't know, don't care," Derek says sharply as he comes to a stop in front of them, all too aware of his thin running shorts. He frowns at them, trying not to catalogue the way Stiles's was sprawled on the pavement, legs bent and his feet planted just so that Derek felt the itching need to drop to his knees between Stiles's thighs. He has a feeling he'd fit there perfectly. His heart is beating much too fast regarding the little workout he had, and Derek's always thought that attack is the best defense. "What are you even doing here?"

Scott gets up slowly, eyes wide. "Nothing," he says and that's when Derek notices he's holding his side. Stiles turns to look from Derek to Scott so fast that his neck cracks.

"Are you hurt?" Derek says, but even before he can finish the question, Stiles is on his feet and crowding Scott.

"Dude," Stiles says, "we got to get you to the hospital."

In that moment Derek realises a helicopter is heading in their direction--it's about to land in the vacant lot and suddenly Derek doesn't have any desire to stay right here. With Stiles being busy to try Scott to let him see ("It's just a scratch, seriously, Stiles"), it's easy to slip away before anyone else notices him.

Back in his apartment Derek vows to never ever go near fucking the dog park again.

~~~***~~~

> This past weekend was full of surprising encounters. Turns out that the Sheriff's Secret Police also have green helicopters. They're pretty useful if you need to get to Night Vale General Hospital. Just saying. No need to shoot or yell at the green helicopters, guys, they're just there to help you!
> 
> In further news about the dog park, it turns out that it's being haunted by some weird shadow-ghost-thingies with long teeth and sharp claws, which yay! More reasons to stay away from that place, do you hear, Scott?
> 
> The Sheriff's Secret Police asks you to not report any odd sightings near the dog park because it might just be an aftereffect of the recent construction. Apparently, uh, they used a new kind of tarmac, which is supposed to have a higher tolerance of strain, but emits some weird fumes while hardening. I didn't pay that much attention to my dad when he was telling me about this, to be honest. The point is that anything you see at the dog park, where you shouldn't be in any case, is due to these fumes and your overactive imagination. 
> 
> Old Woman Josie has informed us that none of her angel friends have said anything about these events, so they must really just be figments of your suppressed subconscious. Or an alternative reality glimpsed through tears of the time-space continuum. 
> 
> But now that the boring PSAs are done with, let's welcome our new citizens to the community! This is in no way related to the recent move-in of one particular fine specimen of the werewolf community, by the way, no matter what Scott says. Night Vale is simply a very welcoming, loving, open-minded community and everybody should know this. We do not discriminate any of our citizens, no matter their gender, political orientation or species.
> 
> We have some news from the community that we'd like to share with you, to show just how nice we all are:  
>  Tomorrow is Open Day at Night Vale's petting zoo, so take this chance to spend some time with your favourite furry friend. Night Vale being the accepting place it is, we won't judge you for choosing the rabbit over the goat or the warthog over the snow leopard. The petting zoo is there for everyone. 
> 
> The zoo is open from 10am to 10pm, so there's ample time to get your cuddling fix in. The Sheriff will be making an appearance to show that he's not a robot controlled by the mayor and because petting small soft animals lowers your stress levels and is good for your heart, according to many studies I've recently read. 
> 
> The Night Vale Community College published the courses for the upcoming winter term. If you are thinking about taking a course to make your life even busier or to escape the crippling boredom that has taken over your life, this is your chance! Orientation is held next Monday. If you want to participate, just show up, no need to RVSP.
> 
> Boy Scouts for America are also announcing that they will attempt to sell cookies. Again. Uhuh, let's see how it turns out. Last year's attempts of Thin Pint and Mimosa were a tad too alcoholic for the general population. This year they promise us Tulips and Tagalog. They didn't want to give us a description of what's in those cookies, so considering that Thin Pint was more or less butter cookies soaked with beer and covered with beer-flavoured icing, I suggest that we find a willing taster with a strong body and no food allergies, just to be on the safe side. Volunteers please call us at Night Vale Community Radio and we'll set up a tasting date with the cookie committee.
> 
> Maybe one of our recent fellow Night Vale citizens might want to get in on that to show their support and dedication to their new, but fine community? Especially if you enjoy running as a hobby because then you needn't worry about working off those pesky extra calories, although I assure you that you look absolutely fine the way you are, workout or not.
> 
> So, okay, it could be that there's someone in particular that I'm thinking of, but my dad has forbidden me to talk about it because it might concern the dog park. Which is bullshit, if you ask me. We weren't in the dog park, we were just close to it, and I could totally talk about this guy and his fantastic ass and his strong thighs and his amazing arms without ever mentioning the stupid shadow—
> 
> _the broadcast cuts out and is replaced by static noise_
> 
> —oookay, listeners, it appears that I have to cut to the weather.

[BANG by empires](http://music.weareempires.com/album/bang-2)

> Today's last segment is our Lonely Hearts Club. It doesn't matter why you feel lonely, everyone is welcome to call in. Could be that you lost your family in a freak cooking accident--Charlotte, you're more than welcome to call us any time!—or you just moved here and haven't made any new friends yet. It isn't easy to build up a social circle, least of all if you're a werewolf, we understand. This is your chance to interact with some of your fellow citizens and test the waters! We don't bite, I promise. Unless you want us to, you know, because I hear werewolves like that sort of thing. No matter what you prefer, we don't judge.
> 
> And now to our first caller! Hey, this is Stiles, how can I help your lonely heart?
> 
> _Stiles, stop talking about that dude. It's creepy._
> 
> Hey Scott, my dear best friend! I haven't talked about him at all. I was simply talking to all of our new citizens.
> 
> _Seriously, you're less subtle than Cecil._
> 
> I doubt that. Okay, Scott just hung up on me, wow, rude. If you would like us to put you in contact with Scott, his code is LHC1. He's not actually lonely because he has me, but he hasn't had much luck in the romantic love department, so if you like pretty boys and wouldn't mind the bit of asthma, call us!
> 
> I hear we have a new caller. Hello!
> 
> _Stop trying to sell me to people, Stiles. I'm not lonely!_
> 
> Then you shouldn't have called in to Lonely Hearts Club! Your bad. Next caller!
> 
> _Stop mentioning the dog park, Stiles._
> 
> Hi Dad! Nice of you to call me at work, but I'm sort of working right now.
> 
> _I'm still the Sheriff of this town._
> 
> You're not really that scary, Dad, but you got points for trying.
> 
> We don't have any other callers, so that's it for the Lonely Hearts Club for now. Good night, Night Vale! 

~~~***~~~

Derek shouldn't go to the petting zoo. He really shouldn't, not when he wants to stay under the radar and has already tragically failed and gotten himself noticed by the Sheriff's Secret Police, the Sheriff (he assumes), the Sheriff's _son_ and the son's best friend. Also he's been outed on the fucking radio, although he would like to know how--it's not like he has _werewolf_ stamped on his forehead and he can pass as human most times.

His desire to hide, to wait until the public interest has calmed down, until nobody but this boy, barely a man, remembers him, is overpowered by his want, by his need to know if his skin is as soft as it looked, how those legs would feel wrapped around his waist, what a choked up moan would sound like from those lips. 

So he finds himself at the petting zoo at noon. It's only when he walks through the doors and looks at the map, more out of a desire to be doing something rather than actually finding a particular animal, that he realises the flaw in his plan. While Stiles said that his father would be at the open day, he didn't say when. Although the Sheriff has a seemingly unlimited amount of people working for him, Derek doubts that the man would voluntarily hang out at the petting zoo all day. 

Derek strolls through the area. For such a small community, the petting zoo is rather large, which at least gives Derek something to do while he tries to figure out what to do.

When he stops to pretend to read the list of names of llamas, he gets a flash of skin covered in scales. Derek almost smiles and turns to look properly. 

Stiles is standing next to him, also staring at the info plaque, worrying his lip. "I wasn't sure you'd turn up," he says, eyes on the text as if it were riveting. Forgot to mention when Dad was gonna be here."

Derek looks at the llamas peacefully eating and ignoring the few visitors who'd wandered off in the backmost part of the petting zoo. The rabbits and ponies were a big hit and Derek had carefully walked into the other direction, away from the huge piles of children and harried parents.

"Who says I'm here for you?" Derek says, but it's difficult to stay aloof when out of the corners of his eyes he can see Stiles's skin shimmering, turning almost lucent.

"Dude, you don't really look like someone who comes to a petting zoo for shits and giggles."

"Don't call me, dude," Derek says automatically. It comes out as harsh and grumpy. Derek winces inside. He's not good at this sort of thing.

"Okay, sourwolf," Stiles says and Derek rolls his eyes. "What do you want me to call you?"

"Derek," he says as he turns to face Stiles. "And since you seem to know everything about me--what are you?"

Stiles grins. "Wouldn't you like to know? Maybe I'll tell you on our date."

Derek senses a trap here. "Which date?"

"Definitely not the first, I'm not putting out on the first date, you know. Our fifth, perhaps, that says something about commitment. Although my mom didn't tell my dad until he proposed, so I'm leaving that option open, too."

"You're annoying," Derek says.

"That's not a no, though."

Derek thinks the only way to shut Stiles up is to kiss him. It actually works.

~~~***~~~

> Hello Night Vale! Today is my last show and I have to say it's been fun, but I'm also pretty happy that it's over. I have dates to plan and someone to woo, which is hard work, too.
> 
> My dad wants me to announce that Earl Road is now again safe for any vehicle drivers and pedestrians. Well, at least this message says so, but do we believe it? I don't know, listeners. But to be honest, I don't really care, because nobody wants to get close to the dog park, anyway, right, Scott?
> 
> I'm now handing over to my fellow intern Eileen. 
> 
> Good night, Night Vale! 


End file.
